FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 3, 2006
Contact: JP Webb
Herzog Wine Cellars
805.983.1560
805.983.1775 (fax)
info@herzogwinecellars.com
www.herzogwinecellars.com
First Harvest Completed at New Herzog Winery in Southern California
2005 is a Milestone Year for Winemaking Family with Deep Roots
Fifty-seven years after losing their family winery to a repressive communist government in Eastern Europe, the Herzogs have finally attained a long-held dream in California, where their new winery has now completed its first harvest.
"I still can’t believe it," said an emotional David Herzog, who arrived in America in 1948 at age 3, along with his parents and siblings, “not only is our family’s winemaking heritage carrying on, it continues to grow and improve at every turn.” The family had survived the harrowing years of World War II only to be driven out of Europe three years after reclaiming their winery from the Nazis.
"In Europe, we made fine dry wines for generations," David recalls. But when the family arrived in New York, they discovered a new wine world based on Concord grapes and sweet wines. The hard-working family built a "traditional" New York wine business that is still thriving on the East Coast. But the urge to make premium vinifera wines led them to California 20 years ago, where they used independent contractors to bottle their wines. Finally, the Herzogs have a home of their own at the southern gateway to the Central Coast, just 30 minutes south of Santa Barbara and 1 hour north of Los Angeles.
“Naturally, our goal is to produce better wines with every vintage and to constantly seek out the tools required to achieve that goal. Designing our new home from the ground up was the perfect opportunity to fine tune our winemaking process,” said Herzog winemaker Joe Hurliman. With a large temperature controlled barrel room and rows of shiny new stainless steel tanks lining the cellar, Herzog winemaker Joe Hurliman was ready for the 2005 vintage. It proved to be both challenging and rewarding for winemakers throughout the state. "Grape yields in vineyards everywhere were up 25 to 50 percent," Joe said. "The good news is that our winery may be new, but our cellar crew has worked together for years and couldn’t be more qualified to produce great wines. We have a seasoned team, even though we are working in a new environment.
That said, the quality of the grapes arriving at the crush pad was high. After a cool, wet spring, a long, sunny fall left the grapes plenty of "hang time" to develop the ripe flavors required to make fine wine. According to Joe, “Our red wines such as Cabernet, Merlot, Syrah and Zinfandel were showing extraordinary development at an early stage in the fermentation process.” This year, for the first time, the winery also made a small quantity of Pinot Noir— known for it’s affinity to the cool-climate growing conditions found in the neighboring Central Coast vineyards.
Within the new winemaking facility Herzog Wine Cellars has also opened a new restaurant called Tierra Sur adjacent to its spacious winery tasting room. Although only a few months old, Tierra Sur’s reputation for top notch Mediterranean-inspired cuisine has grown dramatically through word of mouth and glowing reviews in the press, and reservations are strongly recommended. Both the restaurant and visitors center have been enjoying a parade of wine and food-loving guests surprised and happy to find a winery so close to Los Angeles, yet at the gateway to California’s Central Coast wine region.
For more information, call JP Webb:
805.983.1560, ext. 315
805.983.1775 (fax)
jpwebb@herzogwinecellars.com